A Glance of Internship

From a learner to a teacher, every little thing depended on this moment. It was do or die. The activity was an integration of everything I learned in teaching.

It was Friday afternoon. I was anxious about teaching my client how to catch a ball. I prepared flashcards, games and demonstrations. But before my session, I was informed that a new client was assigned to me. I was petrified even more. I planned everything. If I strayed from that, what would happen? Luckily, there were PT interns to help me and another classmate of mine was also assigned to the same client. I eased a bit. Maybe, I could really do it.

Building rapport was the most important thing I learned. My client and I exchanged pleasantries and high fives. We dribbled and played catch with each other. It was a form of socialization. During the activity, she was able to do the skills but had compensations so I had to modify. I reminded her about her hands when catching, using verbal and visual cues. A firm, yet not too firm, tone was necessary, so she could follow my instructions. She was cooperative and had a game face on. I saw how she loved the activity and it made me realize that I love what I was doing.

Now, I knew that not everything planned could be put into action.  There would always be modifications and these should be based upon the client. But in order to give modifications, one has to be observant to his/her client. To know whether the client was doing the task right or s/he having a hard time doing it, it was up to the therapist to take these cues into account. The activity felt like it was a glance of internship. It was challenging but it was all worth it.